One indigenous language dies every 14 days. While te reo Maori has seen an increase in revitalisation efforts here in New Zealand, learning opportunities remain limited.

It is well known that language learning benefits greatly from the reinforcement of vocabulary and concepts through pictures, so image-based learning outputs are not only fun, but effective. This coupled with the convenience of smartphones becomes a powerful and versatile learning tool.

Kupu, (the Maori translation for ‘word’), is an app that instantly translates the world around you into te reo Maori. Powered by Google Cloud Vision and Translate APIs, with knowledge from Te Aka Maori Dictionary, Kupu uses Machine Learning to understand objects in your photos and translate them into te reo Maori, in real time. It puts bite-sized language learning in the palm of every smartphone user in NZ.

Kupu’s complex tech has been pared back to surface its most simplified elements, ensuring that whoever picks it up can easily use it.

If Kupu is a modern way to learn an indigenous language, we needed a visual language and design set that spoke to this. We used the theme of raranga, (traditional Maori weaving), as inspiration for all graphic elements in the app – a powerful metaphor for the galvanising effect of learning the language of another culture.

We embraced black and red as synonymous with Maori culture, and licensed the image of a Maori girl with a traditional moko kauae on her chin – the perfect mix of modern and traditional.

The app provides an effortless way to explore translations for anything you can take a photo of. It also serves up the next most likely object it detects, along with audio pronunciation examples.

During Maori Language Week, we blanketed Kiwis with contextually targeted translations of everyday objects wherever they turned, heroing Kupu’s camera viewfinder to transform every placement into a Kupu experience.

The proposition was simple: Take a photo, learn a language.